Door/doorglass assembly

ABSTRACT

A door/doorglass assembly including a door, a doorglass and a cap. The door defines a doorglass opening and a slot aligned with the opening. The slot extends through the top edge of the door. The doorglass can be slid into the door through the slot and into alignment with the doorglass opening. The cap is secured in the top edge of the door to enclose the doorglass within the door.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to doors and doorglass assemblies.

Doors and doorglass assemblies are well known and widely used,especially in residential construction. Essentially, a doorglassassembly is a window installed within a door.

One common type of doorglass assembly includes a doorglass (e.g. aninsulated glass or IG) and two frame halves for supporting the doorglasswithin a door. The two frame halves are secured together to sandwichboth the doorglass and the door, and thereby to support the doorglasswithin the door.

Although this doorglass assembly has many advantages, it also hasdrawbacks. First, installation of the doorglass assembly within a dooris labor intensive and consequently expensive. Second, if screws areused to connect the frame halves, the installation is even more laborintensive. Third, if the frame halves snap together (i.e. “screwless”),multiple fasteners must be aligned before the frame halves can besnapped together. If the frame halves are not aligned properly beforeinstallation, the snap-fit fasteners may break destroying either or bothframe halves. Fourth, sealing the multiple pieces of the doorglassassembly to each other and to the door can be challenging.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The aforementioned drawbacks are overcome in the present invention inwhich a doorglass is supported directly by a door. More specifically,the door defines (a) a doorglass opening extending through the door and(b) a slot opening through an edge of the door. The opening and the slotare aligned with one another from transverse directions. The doorglassis supported within the door through the slot.

In the current embodiment, the slot and/or the doorglass includesglides/seals, which facilitate relative movement of the doorglass withinthe slot and/or which provide a weather-tight seal between the doorglassand the slot. Further in the current embodiment, the slot opens throughthe top edge of the door, although the slot can open through any edge ofthe door. Yet further in the current embodiment, a cap is installed inthe open end of the slot—after the doorglass is installed—to furtherretain and seal the doorglass within the door.

The present invention has several advantages. First, the inventionprovides an assembly of relatively low complexity and cost. Second, theinvention can be assembled relatively quickly. Third, the inventionprovides a “flush” design in which no portion of the assembly extendsbeyond the surfaces of the door. Fourth, the invention provides aneffective seal between the doorglass and the door.

These and other objects, advantages, and features of the invention willbe more fully understood and appreciated by reference to the descriptionof the current embodiment and the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective exploded view of the door/doorglass assembly ofthe present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective partially exploded view of the door/doorglassassembly, showing the doorglass partially installed within the door;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the fully assembled door/doorglassassembly;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view, with portions enlarged, of thedoor/doorglass assembly taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the door/doorglassassembly within line V in FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the doorglass assembly taken alongline VI-VI in FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE CURRENT EMBODIMENT

A door/doorglass assembly constructed in accordance with a currentembodiment of the invention is illustrated in the drawings and generallydesignated 10. The assembly 10 includes a door 12, a doorglass 14, and acap 16. The door may be for exterior and/or interior applications.

As seen in FIGS. 1-6, the door 12 includes a frame 36, an inward face orfirst side or first skin 24, and an outward face or second side orsecond skin 26. The frame includes an top member 36 a and a bottommember 36 b. Currently, the frame is wood, and the skins are fiberglassor steel. The skins 24 and 26 are adhered to the frame 36. Apolyurethane or other structural/insulative foam 28 fills the spacebetween the skins. Any door construction having the opening/slotgeometry defined below could be substituted for the construction of thecurrent embodiment.

The door 12 defines a doorglass opening 32 extending transverselythrough the door including the first skin 24 and the second skin 26. Thedoor 12 also defines a slot 30 extending partially through the door fromthe top edge 20 to the bottom 22 of the door. The slot 30 opens throughthe top edge 20 of the door 12. Alternatively, the slot can open througha side edge of the door, or even through the bottom edge of the door.The slot 30 is aligned with the opening 32, and the slot and the openingintersect transversely. The slot 30 is wider and taller than the opening32. The top of the door 20 (or whichever edge the slot opens through)further defines a countersunk opening 21 for receiving the cap 16. Theopening 21 is aligned with the slot 30.

As shown in FIG. 4, a block 50 supports the bottom edge of the doorglass14. The block 50 currently is wood, but may be any other materialsuitable for supporting the doorglass 14.

The door 12 includes a plurality of seals 34 providing two functions.First, the seals facilitate the insertion of the doorglass 14 into thedoor 12. Second, the seals 34 provide a weather-tight seal between thedoorglass 14 and the door 12. The current seals 34 are the material soldby Schlegel Systems, Inc. under the trademark Prolon. Alternatively, theseals 34 may be any suitable sealing product or material, now known orlater developed. The seals 34 may be spring-loaded, or comprised of amaterial with sufficient resilient elasticity to allow flexing of theseals 34 during installation of the doorglass 14. In the currentembodiment, the seals 34 provide approximately 90% of the flexibilitynecessary to install the doorglass within the door 12; and the skins 24and 26 provide approximately 10% of the necessary flexibility. Ofcourse, different materials may result in a different allocation.

The doorglass 14 is generally well-known to those skilled in the art.The current doorglass is an insulated glass (IG). Alternatively, thedoorglass could be a single panel. If the doorglass is an IG, thedoorglass may include a decorative panel, a blind, a shade, or somethingelse between the two panels of the IG. The doorglass 14 preferablyextends the full width of the slot 30, and also preferably extends thefull height between the block 50 and the top cap 16. Consequently, thedoorglass 14 completely fills and extends beyond the opening 32; and theedges of the doorglass 14 are concealed within the slot 30.

The top cap 16 includes a plug portion 42 and a pair of shoulders 40.The plug 42 may be solid or hollow and preferably is dimensioned toclosely fit within the slot 30 thereby closing the slot and sealing theglass within the door 12. The cap 16 is inserted into the slot 30 until(a) the plug 42 engages the top edge of the doorglass 14 and (b) theshoulders 40 engage the countersunk ledge 21. The cap 16 may be wood,composites, metals, rubber, other materials, or any combination of theforegoing. For example, the cap 16 may be co-molded to form shoulders 40of one material and plug 42 of another material. The cap 16 includesfasteners 44 or other means for securing the cap 16 to the door 12.Other suitable means include without limitation snap-fit fasteners andadhesives. Potentially, the cap 16 and the door 12 may be dimensioned tocreate a friction fit adequate to retain the cap 16 within the door.

Assembly

The door 12, the doorglass 14, and the top cap 16 are fabricated usingconventional techniques in view of the specifically selected materials.Appropriate techniques will be readily apparent to those skilled in theart. The slot 30 and the doorglass opening 32 are formed in the door 12using cutting, milling, or any other suitable method. Alternatively, thedoor 12 may be constructed out of separate pieces that are joined todefine the slot 30 and opening 32. The seals 34 are manufactured andattached to the door 12 within the slot 30. The seals 34 are securedwithin the slot 30 using any suitable securing means including withoutlimitation adhesives, barbs, and T-slots. The doorglass 14 is insertedinto the door 12 and specifically into the slot 30 until the bottom edgeof the doorglass engages the support 50. The cap 16 is installed in theslot 30 until plug 42 engages the top edge of the doorglass 14 and theshoulders 40 engage the countersunk edge 21. The fasteners 44 areinstalled through the shoulders 40 and into the door 12 to secure thetop cap 16 and therefore the doorglass 14 within the door 12.

The above description is that of a current embodiment of the invention.Various alterations and changes can be made without departing from thespirit and broader aspects of the invention as defined in the claims,which are to be interpreted in accordance with the principles of patentlaw including the doctrine of equivalents.

1. A door assembly including: a door having a top edge, the doordefining a doorglass opening and a slot extending through said top edgeand having a portion aligned with the doorglass opening; a doorglasswithin the slot in the door, the doorglass aligned with the doorglassopening; and a cap secured in the slot at the top edge to enclose thedoorglass within the door.
 2. The door assembly of claim 1 wherein theslot extends substantially the entire height of the door.
 3. The doorassembly of claim 1 wherein the door includes a weather-tight sealbetween the doorglass and the door.
 4. The door assembly of claim 1wherein the cap includes a plug engaging the doorglass and a pair ofshoulders engaging the door.
 5. The door assembly of claim 4 wherein thecap further includes a pair of fasteners extending through the shouldersand into the door.
 6. A door assembly comprising: a door having firstand second sides and an edge, the door defining a doorglass openingextending through said first and second sides, the door further defininga slot extending through the edge and communicating with the doorglassopening; a doorglass within the slot and aligned with the doorglassopening, the slot enabling the doorglass to be slid through the slot andinto alignment with the doorglass opening; and a closure within the slotto close the slot.
 7. The door assembly of claim 6 wherein the edge is atop edge.
 8. The door assembly of claim 6 wherein the slot extendssubstantially the entire height of the door.
 9. The door assembly ofclaim 6 wherein the doorglass extends through a portion of the height ofthe door.
 10. The door assembly of claim 6 wherein the doorglass openingis narrower than the slot when viewed through the first and second sidesof the door, whereby the lateral edges of the doorglass are hiddenwithin the slot.
 11. A door assembly comprising: a door defining adoorglass opening, the door including an edge, the door further defininga slot through said edge, the slot communicating with the doorglassopening; and a doorglass within the slot and aligned with the doorglassopening, the doorglass being capable of sliding into alignment with thedoorglass opening through the slot.
 12. A door assembly as defined inclaim 11 further comprising a closure secured within the slot.
 13. Adoor assembly as defined in claim 11 wherein the edge is a top edge.